September 26, 2026, 5:54 am | Read time: 4 minutes
You hear about cholesterol all the time, especially as you get older. However, triglycerides are mentioned much less frequently. These are also blood fats that play an important role in our health. But which value actually says more about health? And what exactly is behind cholesterol and triglycerides?
Follow the FITBOOK channel on WhatsApp now!
Which Value Is More Indicative?
The question cannot be answered universally, as both blood fats indicate different health risks and carry different medical urgencies depending on their levels. However, they can be divided into two areas:
For Acute Organ Risks
Triglycerides primarily serve the body as an energy reserve and are an independent risk indicator for cardiovascular diseases when moderately elevated.1 However, if the level rises extremely high (from 500 to 1,000 mg/dL), the medical priority shifts dramatically. There is an acute risk of a potentially life-threatening inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis). In this extreme range, rapidly lowering triglycerides takes precedence over lowering cholesterol.
For Cardiovascular Risk
When it comes to the long-term prevention of arteriosclerosis, heart attack, and stroke, LDL cholesterol is considered the most important target value in cardiological guidelines. Triglycerides also play a role, but LDL cholesterol is usually the focus of risk assessment and therapy.
Cholesterol is a collective term. For heart health, LDL cholesterol is primarily considered the decisive value.
Lowering Your “bad” Cholesterol Can Reduce Dementia Risk by 26 Percent
Symptoms of Arteriosclerosis – You Should Take These Warning Signs Seriously
What Are Triglycerides?
Most people are probably more familiar with cholesterol. However, triglycerides are, alongside cholesterol, the most important blood fats and the primary energy reserve of our body. Triglycerides supply muscles and organs with energy and are produced whenever the body is supplied with excess calories. This happens especially with high consumption of rapidly digestible carbohydrates, sugar–including fructose–and alcohol. The liver directly converts these surpluses into new fats, which are then packaged and transported through the blood and stored in fat tissue for later use. If you consistently supply the body with more energy than it consumes–or regularly consume a lot of sugar and alcohol–the triglyceride level in the blood can rise significantly. However, it is not always solely due to lifestyle and diet. In rarer cases, a genetic disorder is behind it, where the body lacks certain enzyme components and cannot properly break down or process triglycerides in the blood.
Overview Table
Information on Blood Sampling
The triglyceride level is determined through a simple blood test in the lab. For an accurate assessment, it is important to come to the blood draw fasting, as blood fat levels fluctuate significantly after meals. You should not eat or drink alcohol for 12 to 14 hours before the blood draw.
The value usually appears on the lab report in one of two units: mg/dL or mmol/L.
- mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter) measures the pure weight of the fat in the blood (standard in Germany).
- mmol/L (millimoles per liter) measures the chemical number of fat molecules (international unit).
These are merely two different units for the same value. Depending on which lab report you receive, one or the other will appear.
Also interesting: Having problems with cholesterol? We recommend these drinks
What Is Cholesterol?
Cholesterol is not just cholesterol. As mentioned earlier, the term is often used in everyday life as a collective term for different transport forms in the blood. The form HDL cholesterol is positively regarded, as it is known as the body’s garbage disposal. It collects excess fat from the vessel walls and returns it to the liver. LDL cholesterol, on the other hand, primarily delivers cholesterol to the cells. However, if too much circulates in the blood, it deposits in the arteries and can gradually narrow them. Therefore, a high LDL level is considered the actual risk factor for the heart and vessels–and is the “bad” cholesterol you always hear about.